This invention relates generally to apparatus for mounting chip type circuit elements on a printed circuit board and, in particular, to apparatus for mounting chip type circuit elements which do not have lead wires associated therewith on a printed circuit board in a serial or one-by-one fashion.
U.S. patent application Ser. No. 28,924, filed April 10, 1979, assigned to the same assignee as the instant application, discloses apparatus for mounting chip type circuit elements on a printed circuit board. Such apparatus includes a suction plate adapted to pick up and hold a multiplicity of chip type circuit elements and convey the same to a printed circuit board on which they are mounted.
Such mounting apparatus which incorporates the suction plate described above has a disadvantage in that it is difficult to utilize the same when it is desired to mount the chip type circuit elements after electronic elements having lead wires are inserted into the printed circuit board.
The transfer of chip type circuit elements from a supply unit having a feed mechanism to a conveyor pallet or directly to a printed circuit board utilizing suction apparatus has also presented problems in conventional apparatus. Further, in apparatus for mounting chip type circuit elements on a printed circuit board wherein the chip type circuit elements are carried and conveyed on a pallet, problems arise in cases where the upper surface of the pallet is flat. In such cases, it is difficult to reliably prevent positional deviations of the chip type circuit elements or rotations of the same during operation.
Still further, in apparatus for conveying chip type circuit elements to a printed circuit board which utilize suctioning of the circuit element on a mounting head, it is not uncommon for the circuit element to deviate from its desired position. Where such positional deviations are unduly large, the electrodes of the circuit element may be spaced an undesirable amount from the conductor pattern printed on the circuit board resulting in various problems, such as failure of connections. It is also necessary in some instances to adjust the position of the chip type circuit elements on the mounting head during normal operation.